


How Can One Choose to Forget?

by ImSorry



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Guardian Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Season 3 Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-24
Updated: 2020-03-24
Packaged: 2021-02-28 17:53:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 880
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23291254
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ImSorry/pseuds/ImSorry
Summary: that-starbucks-lover brought to my attention that Miracle Queen has a lot of depressing implications and I had to process them here.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 33





	How Can One Choose to Forget?

Marinette had been through a lot of heartbreak over her long life. She had dealt with the loss of her parents, two children, and an unfathomable number of hamsters. She had lost friends and foes alike, each with their own special brand of pain. She had lost her youth, her strength, and even her identity of Ladybug. Giving up that title had been a difficult task, but a necessary one, and she had never regretted her decision. Knowing you’re doing the right thing doesn’t make it hurt any less, though.

Yes, Marinette had loved and lost more than her fair share over the years. But the hardest loss happened when she was just a teenager.

She would never forget the day that she became the Guardian of the Miraculous. Of course, it was a huge battle in the war between good and evil, and it shook her haphazard team to its very core. The part that she would always hone in on, though, was that fateful moment when Master Fu officially gave up the Miracle Box. The moment that Master Fu, her friend and mentor, had given up his entire life just to defeat Hawkmoth. The moment that he showed her exactly what she had gotten herself into.

Marinette had replayed that day over and over in her head, hoping that she could find a way around it. Because someday, somewhere in the future, she would have to decide how much of her life would be worth forgetting.

She would have to decide to give up her years getting to know Alya, who she only met the day before the Miraculous entered her life, and give up knowing Adrien entirely. She would have to decide to throw away all of the confidence she had gained since becoming Ladybug. She would be giving up that pride, that joy that came from a well-executed plan. She would lose years of school for sure, no telling what that would do to her developed adult brain. And, most frighteningly, she would give up Chat Noir.

And so, when Hawkmoth was defeated, she kept the box. 

She figured that if she just held on to her role forever, she could also keep her memories intact. Thus, she continued her life like the normal girl she hoped to be. She got married, raised a handful of kids, regaled them with stories of Paris long ago. 

She built a fashion empire with her bare hands and, notably, without taking the easy route by capitalizing on the plummet of the Agreste brand. Marinette designed Alya’s wedding dress, and the pantsuit she wore when she uncovered the biggest scoop of her career. She supported all of her friends through their dreams, watched them soar in ways they could never have imagined as kids. Marinette couldn’t imagine what her life would be like if she had chosen to forget.

Then, Marinette got really good at eulogies. First, it was her parents. The Ladybug side took over for those few days, the strong woman who perseveres through a disaster. She was grateful that she had not let go of this ghost from her past, that it could still possess her in times of need. She would call on this strength over a dozen times in the last two decades of her life. 

One after another, she would say goodbye to everyone who she cared about. Every loss chipped away at the confidence that had previously surrounded her decision back then. 

Marinette had not made her decision with death in mind. Each loss of a loved one overwhelmed her with guilt. Had she given up the box back then, there would have been an opportunity to create new memories in her brief but fulfilling life. But now, she would have to live forever knowing they would never come back. That, or live the last few years of her life without those precious memories of her daughter’s first steps, of her wedding day, of her husband.

These were the thought swirling through her mind when she sat alone in her room. The guilt consumed her every heartbeat as she opened a drawer that had been locked for a century. With shaking breaths, she opened the Miracle box. Gently, Marinette touched the earrings and ring that she knew all too well. She smiled at the necklace and bracelet nestled next to them before glancing solemnly at the brooches across the circle. Marinette shook her head and carried on. One by one, she opened each drawer. Each jewel sparked memories – some good, some bad. None that she could bear to lose. 

Finally, she found the drawer she was looking for. Slowly, reverently, her shaking fingers clasped around the cool silver. Her heartbeat matched the ticking that came out of the pocket watch. She knew what Alix would say if she were here. She knew that Adrien would talk her out of it, that Alya would knock the timepiece out of her hands. 

But they were gone. They were gone and Marinette could no longer stand the fear of forgetfulness that had plagued her. So, she took a deep breath and tried to determine when she should have made her decision in the first place.

It was time for Marinette to make her own second chance.


End file.
